4 sweet boys 1 princess

9th Birthday- American Girl style

2012-02-12T11:32:00.002-06:00

Alanna got an American Girl doll for Christmas. Her wish for her birthday was to go to the store and get her doll's ears pierced, and eat at the Bistro. I heard that the American Girl store and Bistro is ridiculously busy on the weekends, so I took her there for lunch on her actual birthday which meant leaving school early. That night we had cake with her brothers since they missed out on the girl's lunch.

field trip to the aquarium

2012-02-02T18:20:00.002-06:00

Ross is attending an online school this year and they periodically have field trips. This one was to an aquarium we had never been to before. Both boys had a good time. They had a really neat tunnel that was all glass with fish and sharks swimming by. Brady also enjoyed touching some of the fish.

ICE at the Gaylord Texan

2012-01-19T10:46:00.002-06:00

contest at Kim's work= 2 free tickets= fun date!
I have always wanted to check this out, but, well, it's expensive! So I was so excited when Kim came home with 2 tickets he had won, so we checked it out on NYE. We had so much fun. The theme was Shrek and everything is carved out of ice. They had a huge ice slide, and the last sculpture we saw was the nativity. It was beautiful, I couldn't get a picture that would do it justice.

Merry Christmas!

2012-01-07T15:52:00.002-06:00

Ross wanted a computer.

Brady's pile of gifts at pepa's house.

Christmas jammies!!

Alanna has been asking for this gift since last January when she saw her friend with one!

Visits With Santa

2011-12-21T11:44:00.003-06:00

The real Santa comes to our local bank every December. Brady was too scared to go see him, and Alanna was home sick, so Logan and Kaleb went to see him. Then we had a "Breakfast with Santa" event at our church where we got to see Santa again. Alanna talked Brady into standing next to him. Ross was at a scout campout so we could not get him in the picture. I love having these fun ways to see Santa every year without having to stand in a long line at the mall.

The Favorite Christmas Tradition

2011-12-14T11:06:00.005-06:00

The kids look forward to making gingerbread houses every year, and they remind me every November so I won't forget HAHA I made Brady a simple one because he mostly wants to decorate it and eat the candy.

Happy Birthday Ross!

2011-11-20T13:59:00.002-06:00

I now have a teenager! Yikes!

Reflections Art Contest

2011-11-20T13:51:00.001-06:00

Good job Alanna and Kaleb! Good luck at the Regional level!

Halloween!!

2011-11-15T08:04:00.003-06:00

Halloween=lots of candy!!
We went to the trunk or treat at church and trick-or-treated around the neighborhood so I love that we got great use out of the costumes. Ross decided 12 is too old to wear a costume so he chose all black clothes with a scary mask. Logan decided he wanted to be a cowboy months ago. The lion costume has been worn by most of the kids but the way Brady roared at everyone he saw made him the most adorable lion. I love that Alanna chose to be a mean witch because she usually chooses princess costumes. I found Kaleb's costume after Halloween last year and he was really excited to wear it. I am proud of my guess on that one hoping someone would love it.

Balloon Festival

2011-10-30T21:48:00.001-05:00

Alanna's dance teacher asked some of her students if they would like to perform in the local hot air balloon festival. We thought it would be fun since usually their only chance to perform is at their annual recital. Alanna spent a month going to extra practices with her group and their performance on Saturday was really good!

AAAARGH!

2011-10-30T21:44:00.001-05:00

The 4th graders performed a pirate musical in which Kaleb was a prisoner pirate. It was really cute!

Pumpkin Patch Field Trip

2011-10-26T16:26:00.002-05:00

I love this pumpkin patch. I love that the pumpkins grow right there instead of being hauled in and dumped on a field. I love that they have a huge petting zoo because Brady loves animals. I also love that they have a hayride. It feels like fall after visiting there with the kids. Every one of my kids have been able to go there in kindergarten for a field trip, and we have gone other times too since I like it there. Logan had such a good time there with his class today, and I am so thankful that I was able to go along and chaperone with Brady. It feels like fall now!

Kaleb is 10!

2011-09-16T08:11:00.001-05:00

For Kaleb's 10th birthday he got to go out to eat to his favorite restaurant, eat his favorite cookie cake, and go to a movie with his friend. He said it was a great birthday weekend!

First Day of School 2011

2011-08-26T11:11:00.001-05:00

Alanna was embarrassed that I wanted a picture in front of the school. Oh well, I do it every year!

I can't believe Logan is in Kindergarten!

Brady's First Sno-cone

2011-08-16T10:55:00.000-05:00

He loves them, just like his mom!

Every summer needs swimming pictures. . .

2011-08-07T17:07:00.004-05:00

Brady has been so fun to watch in the water this summer. He began the summer dipping his toes in the water and now he jumps in and loves to swim. Logan is also a little fish. Kaleb loves getting on his snorkeling gear and swimming around the pool. Maybe someday we can actually take him snorkeling for real.

Yellowstone

2011-08-04T16:13:00.001-05:00

beautiful scenery and a buffalo too

Old Faithful

We had a great time in Idaho, and Yellowstone has to be one of my favorite places. I'm not sure if the kids felt the same since Kaleb asked "don't you ever get tired of looking at geysers?". HAHA I guess the answer is no, I don't.

Happy July 4th!

2011-07-07T15:25:00.002-05:00

at least their clothes look festive!

he wanted to hold one like the other kids but he did not realize how hot they were!

I love that July 4th was on Monday so we got to celebrate all weekend! We swam and had cookouts with family and friends, plus saw the new Cars 2 movie. We had a blast!

Six Flags

2011-06-23T10:25:00.003-05:00

After suffering from motion sickness yesterday this is the only picture I got :( Ross suffered right along with me but still had fun. Luckily Marissa went with me so Kaleb and Alanna had someone to ride with. We had to drag Kaleb out of the park since he loved it so much.

Logan's Last Day of Preschool

2011-06-17T09:16:00.002-05:00

I can't believe he is a Kindergartener next year. He had a good time in school this year with his friends, and his teacher was really patient with the sometimes wild boys in his class. Logan had a good year, he now recognizes letters and numbers and is working on writing them. I put him in preschool this year hoping that he would get used to sitting still in a classroom setting since Kinder here is all-day. I think he will do fine next year.

Dance Recital

2011-06-08T16:45:00.001-05:00

Alanna did a tap routine to the song "Green Eggs and Ham" and it was awesome, the choroegraphy was super fast and they all kept up with it. So proud of Alanna!

Mommy's slackin'

2011-05-27T10:03:00.001-05:00

Brady went in Alanna's room and found her lip gloss and markers and tried to do his own make-up.

Happy 5th Birthday Logan!!

2011-05-23T09:06:00.002-05:00

Logan chose Chuck E Cheese for his birthday so we met grandma and grandpa, Marissa, and Kayla there to have some fun. Logan wanted a baseball cake and that was easy to do. He loved reminding everyone that he was the birthday boy all weekend long so that they would do what he wanted. He is so funny. We love you Logan!

Easter Part 2

2011-05-06T10:23:00.001-05:00

There are plenty of places to hide eggs at my grandparents house!

To Mema

2011-04-30T20:15:00.000-05:00

Easter Morning Part 2

2011-04-26T15:37:00.001-05:00

We try to keep it simple since the Easter Bunny is not the main reason for the day.

Easter Morning

2011-04-26T15:30:00.002-05:00

Brady

2011-04-08T16:22:00.000-05:00

my sister took this cute picture of my sweet 2 year old!

Brady's Birthday. . . zoo trip

2011-03-14T17:10:00.001-05:00

Brady's second love is animals so we took him to the zoo for his birthday. We went to a small one so he could enjoy running around, then afterwards we went on a little train ride. We ended the afternoon going to his favorite ice cream place- Braum's!

Brady's Birthday

2011-03-14T17:03:00.003-05:00

He loved opening gifts.

My mom and I made him a birthday shirt.

He loves Hot Wheel cars so I wanted him to have a racecar birthday.

My big 2 year old trying to blow out his candle.

Time goes by so quickly, we sure love this kid.

Birthday and Baptism Day

2011-02-10T12:19:00.003-06:00

Alanna turned 8 this year so she was able to be baptized. She picked out a pattern for a dress and Grandma made it for her (Grandma nicknamed it the mini-wedding dress, it is pretty fancy, Alanna was "fluffing" it in the picture which she must have done a million times that day). Afterwards we had a lunch and a birthday cake which she asked me to make and she found these cute candles to decorate it with. She also said the cake had to have roses, which she is very into right now. We surprised her with a DS, and of course she got her own set of scriptures. She had a great birthday!!

Alanna's Birthday Girl's Day

2011-01-31T14:25:00.002-06:00

Instead of a birthday party, Alanna requested a girl's day.

She got her nails done.

She picked Taco Cabana for lunch.

We also shopped, she picked out jewelery and a new dress. It was so great to spend the time with her! Happy 8th birthday to my one and only daughter!

Remember This??

2011-01-09T20:51:00.001-06:00

What a difference a year makes!!

Happy Birthday!!

2011-01-06T11:25:00.002-06:00

to my 80-something grandpa (I have been calling pepa since birth). I know he reads my blog sometimes so I hope he does today! He is the sweetest person ever and my kids love to go see him. He takes them on tractor rides around his property and they love to sit by him in his easy chair :) I know I am so lucky that my kids are able to spend time with their great-grandparents!

Christmas Morning

2011-01-01T12:01:00.000-06:00

Christmas Eve

2010-12-31T09:59:00.001-06:00

New PJ's!

Gingerbread houses and Christmas cookies. . .

2010-12-23T18:55:00.000-06:00

are some of our Christmas traditions.

Kaleb's Cowboy Christmas Program

2010-12-23T18:37:00.002-06:00

This was a cute program the 3rd grade did, and the songs mentioned Christmas which you don't see in public schools much anymore. Kaleb was so excited for me to come watch it.

Family Pictures

2010-12-15T14:14:00.003-06:00

We hired a photographer to do our pictures back in October, but I wanted to post them after we sent out our Christmas cards. Here are some of my favorites.

The real Santa. . .

2010-12-10T18:58:00.000-06:00

lives in our little town, not the North Pole.

Happy 12th Birthday Ross!!

2010-11-25T09:52:00.003-06:00

Ross requested a chocolate cake with blue frosting and crazy candles for his birthday. Oh, and Texas Roadhouse too- yum!!

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-01T17:21:00.000-05:00

Dorothy big and small. . .

2010-10-26T12:17:00.002-05:00

Happy Halloween! Alanna and my niece Madelynn are both going to be Dorothy for Halloween- so of course we had to get their pictures together. I know I am biased but I think they are so cute! Thanks Grandma for the hand sewn costumes!

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-21T14:31:00.002-05:00

Last October Logan and I went with Alanna on her school field trip to this pumpkin patch. Logan has been begging to go back since last October so I took him and Brady today. I love opportunities like this to spend time with 1 or 2 of the kids, and Logan is such a fun kid to hang out with. Brady had a much better time this year than he did last year (remember the crying pictures??). He would not let the animals touch him but he loved walking around.

New Computer!

2010-10-14T09:59:00.003-05:00

Well, I have not had a computer for a few weeks, but now I have a new laptop! Merry early Christmas to me. Hopefully I can get this figured out soon and have a new blog post up soon also. I still need to figure out how to upload my camera to this computer.

My Little "Linus"

2010-09-16T11:30:00.002-05:00

Brady decided to start dragging this blanket all over the house. Many of my kids have picked a favorite toy or blanket that has become their "lovie" so with Brady I was prepared. I filled his crib with those cute mini blankets with stuffed animals attached and mini stuffed animals that he could choose from. Unfortunately he chose the huge blanket I use to cover him up with at night. This is a lot harder to drag with us everywhere!

Brady's 18 month pictures

2010-09-11T13:54:00.001-05:00

We got a couple even though he did not want to leave mom's lap. He is such a shy little guy.

Kaleb's Birthday Party

2010-09-07T11:34:00.002-05:00

Kaleb chose Chuck E Cheese for his birthday. I have always loved that place too, sometimes I can't believe how old I am since I still enjoy so many "kids places". He seemed to have a great day, he thanked me for his party many times.

Kaleb-

2010-09-04T16:38:00.001-05:00

Happy 9th birthday!! Birthday party pictures coming soon!!

Logan

2010-08-24T16:35:00.001-05:00

is in pre-K. I am excited because I think he needs this in order to make it through all day kindergarten next year. I warned the teacher though- he can be a little silly and hard to deal with sometimes. But he is so fun to be around.

First Day of School

2010-08-24T16:27:00.001-05:00

Alanna- 2nd grade Kaleb- 3rd grade Logan- pre-K (and the little boy I baby-sit, he wanted to be in the picture)

Ross is in 6th grade, but it is not cool for your mom to follow you into the middle school to take a pic

We celebrated the last week of summer by. . .

2010-08-21T13:26:00.002-05:00

making homemade popsicles almost every day.

Here is Brady's first taste:

He seems pretty unsure but he ended up eating the whole thing.

Inspiration

2010-08-04T11:47:00.003-05:00

My friend Emily inspired me to make some Christmas cards. Yes, I know it is summer and Christmas is still months away, but she pointed out how busy we all are in December and how all of those Christmas projects we would love to get to never seem to get done. For me that is definitely true so I had a great time pulling out all my Christmas scraps and "card-lifting" some of Emily's ideas mixed in with some of my own. Now I have 20 cards ready for the holiday season.

This is what happens. . .

2010-07-30T18:07:00.002-05:00

when an inexperienced sewer tries to make her daughter a SKIRT.

Oh well. I added the ruffles to some capris she already had and I think it made a cute outfit anyway.

My Water Baby

2010-07-27T19:06:00.002-05:00

I took the kids to play in some fountains today on the way home from Logan's eye doctor appointment. Brady had a blast. The fountain would turn off, he would walk over and look down at it then it would turn on and hit him in the face- he did not even care! It was so cute. He also would stand there and stick his hand in it too like he was not sure how it worked. I love this stage that he is at.

Where have we been this summer??

2010-07-19T22:31:00.004-05:00

We have been here more than anywhere else.

my very favorite swimming pool picture

awkward teeth stage

He is being 11 in this pic.

I have a hard time getting Kaleb in pictures so I love this one!

swimming is serious business

More Pie Please???

2010-07-12T23:57:00.002-05:00

Brady used to be really picky, but lately he has been trying more foods. He learned that he loves dad's blueberry pie.

4th of July

2010-07-05T09:15:00.002-05:00

I love that we are having a 3 day weekend to celebrate July 4th this year. We have kept it pretty simple- we have stuck to our family tradition of making a flag cake and watching fireworks.

Let Summer Begin. . .

2010-06-10T13:41:00.003-05:00

Since I do not have the desire or energy to go to the neighborhood pool everyday, I decided to find some fun water activities for the kids to play outside at home. I remember having a great time on a slip-n-slide when I was a kid and luckily they still sell them. I am very pleased with my $10 purchase.

Any other cool, affordable water toys out there I should get? Anything to keep the fighting to a minimum- if they are busy they don't seem to argue as much :)

Logan's Birthday

2010-05-25T14:39:00.002-05:00

Logan had to share his birthday with Alanna's dance recital day. I felt really bad about that since her dance recital day is rehearsal all morning and early afternoon with the performance that night. I tried to make his birthday special anyway with donuts for him when he woke up, and then an ice cream cake and presents when we got home that night. Then on Monday I let him have a swimming party with his little friends from playgroup. I ordered them pizza and brought cupcakes that Logan helped me decorate with Star Wars stickers. He had a great time so I think he still had a great birthday even though he had to share his special day with Alanna.

Alanna's Dance Recital

2010-05-25T14:33:00.002-05:00

Alanna's 3rd dance recital was this past Saturday. She LOVES dancing on stage and wearing the fancy costume. I think she also loves the attention that she gets too. Her class did a really cute tap number. I was able to take pictures during the rehearsal, she comes walking out on stage barefooted which was a little annoying since I knew I wanted to take pictures. I guess her bows on her shoes were too tight and were hurting her feet. Luckily we got that figured out before the big performance that evening.

Pinewood Derby

2010-05-25T14:28:00.003-05:00

I am a little behind in posting this- but last month Kaleb participated in his first Pinewood Derby. He had a great time, and his car did well (I think it came in 3rd place??). What I love about him is that he can be such a goofball. He designed his car to look like his dad's truck, and then decorated it with Pokemon stickers.

Seriously? Already?

2010-05-07T14:36:00.004-05:00

Logan is turning 4 in a couple of weeks. I love this stage, he is such a fun kid. I only have one more year until he goes to school but it seems like just yesterday he was born. He loves Star Wars (still), movies, playing outside, swimming, and sports. He says he wants to play baseball and soccer this year. Kaleb is his idol and it is so fun to watch him try to copy Kaleb. When Kim took Logan to get his haircut he asked him how he wanted his hair to look and he said "just like Kaleb". He is such a sweetheart unless you make him mad- if you do- then watch out!!

1st Grade Field Trip

2010-04-28T13:24:00.002-05:00

I went with Alanna on her field trip to a zoo in a small town nearby. It was not as big as the Dallas or Fort Worth zoo, but I loved how close we could get to the giraffes, and they did a private show just for the students where they were able to pet some animals.

I do not have very many pictures with my kids.

Alanna with her friend, so cute.

Check out their tongues! I love giraffes so this was so neat.

Logan and Alanna were able to pet this hedgehog and a big lizard.

Bluebonnets

2010-04-25T16:40:00.002-05:00

Every year I am trying to remember to get at least a couple of the kids pictures in the Texas bluebonnets. This year I managed to find a time to get all the kids to pose for me. I am so excited, I have a frame in my hallway that needs updating and I am planning to use these. I let the kids pose anyway that they wanted so some of the pics are silly, but thy do show their true personalities (especially Brady, he is not really a nature boy- he has been walking for several months now but still refuses to walk outside LOL).

Easter Festivities

2010-04-05T13:13:00.002-05:00

On Saturday we decided to try out an Easter egg hunt at a camp near our house. It is the same camp Kaleb went to over Spring Break and the 5th graders went to in October. Both boys loved it there so they wanted to try out the Easter activities there. It was amazing and everything was free! They had 3 egg hunts, free food, games, bounce houses, plus you could do many of the "camp" activities also. We headed down to the lake where the kids went canoeing and fishing. They also played in the bounce house and we had free sodas in the dining hall. It was really fun.

Easter morning the kids woke up to their Easter baskets filled with all sorts of stuff. Do you have too many kids when their baskets take up the entire couch?? After breakfast and a session of General Conference on TV we headed to Grandma's for lunch. Then the aunts hid the eggs and the kids hunted them in grandma's backyard. Afterwards we went to a cousin's birthday party and enjoyed cake and ice cream before heading home. It was a great day spent with family!

Brady's Birthday Party

2010-03-15T20:12:00.002-05:00

The birthday boy walking toward me

opening gifts- he wasn't too excited about the process

eating his gigantic cupcake- he LOVED the frosting but did not really eat the cake, he must not be a chocolate fan

Happy 1st Birthday!

2010-03-09T12:47:00.002-06:00

Happy Birthday to my sweet munchkin, I call him that because he is a skinny little thing but he can out-eat all the other kids. His birthday party is this weekend but I took him to the park to swing today- he loves it. I am thankful every day that he is on our family. I was not expecting him but I am the most blessed mom in the world to have him.

I'm Walking!!

2010-03-07T15:10:00.001-06:00

He is walking 5-6 steps at a time and it is so fun to watch. I can't believe he is almost 1. I am so sad about it.

Snow!!!!

2010-02-12T22:33:00.002-06:00

I have never seen this much snow here- I thought I was back in Utah/Idaho. Of course, the kids went out and played in it several times. Unfortunately they could only play for short periods of time before they would have to come in and warm up- we do not have proper snow-playing clothing since it rarely happens here!! They did not mind coming in and warming up since mom always said yes to hot chocolate. Everyone had fun except for Brady- mean mommy made him take some pics since this is his first winter.

Happy Birthday Alanna!

2010-01-31T11:42:00.002-06:00

We went to Rainforest Cafe for her birthday last night (and for mine too). It was good and a really neat place. Alanna got a TV/DVD player for her room from us and lots of toys from family. Great day.

Happy Birthday to me!

2010-01-30T10:44:00.000-06:00

I'm getting too old.

another "For Grandma" post

2010-01-23T21:26:00.002-06:00

My mom got this for Brady for Christmas, it is his new favorite toy. He was actually a little afraid of it at first, but now he crawls right to it and I have to push the button over and over. I love watching him play.

Night at the Museum

2010-01-19T08:40:00.002-06:00

We told the kids we were going to take them to the museum and Logan kept saying that we were going to the "Night at the Museum". He is so funny. Anyway, we actually went to the Museum of Nature and Science. I had heard that they had a fun children's area so we decided to check it out (the fact that I had coupons to get 2 kids in free was a nice bonus, she actually let them all in for free, I think because the lady in line in front of us was so rude and Kim was very friendly so she told him she would just charge him for 2 adults, score!). It was a great place. The children's area is huge, plus they have some interactive exhibits that interested the older kids.
Logan loved the firetruck and fireman dress-up area.

Kaleb and I both had a good time making huge bubbles.

Of course, it is fun to dig up bones. . .

in this room.

Beasley

2010-01-15T12:55:00.001-06:00

My mom made Beasley this coat, I think he looks so cute in it. Maybe now he will do something other than sleep on my red afghan all day. :)

A White Christmas

2009-12-29T16:52:00.002-06:00

Snow on Christmas is very rare around here. My grandparents live in a place where they get a little more than we do, but not that much and rarely on Christmas. It snowed Christmas Eve but we got there too late for the kids to play in it, but they were excited to see that the snow was still there when they woke up Christmas day!

Christmas Day

2009-12-27T15:51:00.002-06:00

We had a interesting Christmas. It started to snow on Christmas Eve just as we were leaving for Abilene to see my grandparents. We did not think it would be a problem for the roads since it had been 75 the day before! By the time we had been on the road for an hour or so we noticed that it was sticking to the roads and they were slippery. We made the decision to keep on driving, probably not the best decision. It took us about 10 hours to make a 4 hour trip, the freeway was shut down so we had to take back roads, some of the drive was done at 20 mph while cars around us were slipping and sliding. Kim knows how to drive in it but the rest of Texas seemed pretty clueless. It was scary to see how many cars nearly slid into us. Once we got there the kids had a blast playing in the snow and opening gifts on Christmas day. It was great spending Christmas with so much of my family, and it was great to have a white Christmas, but the drive was so stressful.

Everyone in their Christmas PJ's in front of our tree

Brady loved Christmas breakfast!

Merry Christmas!!

2009-12-23T20:27:00.000-06:00

Heard Museum Trail of Lights

2009-12-21T14:19:00.002-06:00

It was dark so I could not get great pics. The Heard Museum still had out their dino display, plus had the whole trail lit up and free hot chocolate. The kids loved that the dinos had Santa hats on and that they were able to pet a snake (yuck). I'm glad that the kids had a good time.

they grow up so fast. . .

2009-12-18T12:13:00.000-06:00

he is so fun

Making Cookies

2009-12-15T15:16:00.000-06:00

Brady's first cookie- he liked it of course

Santa

2009-12-12T12:50:00.002-06:00

Santa was at our church Christmas breakfast this morning!

Someone thought he was scary.

Kaleb thought he was nice, Logan would stand next to him if Kim was there, Alanna would not go near him, and Ross is at Grandma's.

2009 Church Babies LOL

2009-12-09T20:12:00.002-06:00

We have had a ton of babies born this year at our church. This is most, but not all of them. Brady is at the top of the circle in his Santa pj's. Many of them were not too sure what to think of this photo session.

Gingerbread House Tradition

2009-12-06T13:12:00.002-06:00

A favorite at our house every Christmas. . .

Trains at Northpark

2009-12-02T14:13:00.003-06:00

I have heard so many people talk about the model train display at Northpark mall that is there every Christmas. Our church playgroup went there today so I decided to check it out since I would only have to pay for Logan and I (I am cheap that way). He loved it!! It is definitely worth it if you are taking kids his age that love trains, but I don't think my other kids would have been as excited about it. It was fun to watch his enthusiasm and the display was really nice. It was a fun little Christmas tradition I would love to do for my younger kids.

They gave the kids engineer hats which Logan proudly wore the whole time.

Checking them out with his friend.

First Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T09:05:00.003-06:00

This is the first time we have given Brady a plate of food of the same thing we are eating, usually he has snacks that he can feed himself while we eat. He was pretty pleased. His favorites were the turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing. He especially loved the jello.

For Grandma

2009-11-20T08:20:00.001-06:00

My mom requested pics of Brady standing up. He is proud of himself!

Happy 11th Birthday!!

2009-11-19T08:23:00.003-06:00

Ross is 11 today. He is such a sweet kid. Sometimes his worrying drives me crazy, and I wish that he got along with his siblings better, BUT he is a good kid that helps me a lot and is absolutely in love with Brady which is fun to watch. We love you Ross.

Brady's First Haircut

2009-11-06T16:01:00.003-06:00

Brady's hair was uneven in the back, hanging over his ears, and in his eyes so I thought it was time for a trim. The lady went a little scissor happy so I was freaking out a little, but the end result looks super cute on him. I think I am going to let it grow out a little though before I hurry back in for another haircut.

Before:

During:

After:

Congratulations!

2009-11-04T14:06:00.001-06:00

Ross earned his Arrow of Light! We are proud of him and all his hard work.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-01T14:27:00.004-06:00

We did our usual Halloween tradition- walking the neighborhood trick-or-treating until the kid's bucket's are so full they can hardly carry them. My sister and her ladybug Madelynn came with me which was fun. Madelynn was an angel and slept the entire time. Brady was done after about 20 minutes. Luckily his daddy came and picked him up from me. The kids had a great time and I am letting them gorge themselves on candy all day today, then it gets put up on a high shelf.

Alanna the princess with her stash

Kaleb was Super Mario

Ross was Harry Potter (I think he looks a little like him anyway!)

Logan was Darth Vader (he is a Star Wars fanatic)

Brady my skeleton

Logan's Eye Dr Appointment

2009-10-27T12:42:00.003-05:00

I took Logan to a Pediatric Opthamologist today to get his eyes checked out. Sometimes they looked a little off to me but I could never pinpoint what it was. We have great insurance right now so I felt like now was a good time to have them looked at. She said he has Optic Nerve Coloboma. Basically it is a disorder of the optic nerve that he was born with and can not be fixed. So we have to focus on getting the best vision we can from the left eye which is the affected eye. He has perfect vision in his right eye and his vision is good in his left so we don't have to do anything right now. Someday he may have to wear glasses or an eye patch a few hours a day to strengthen his left eye. His left eye sometimes wanders outward so if that worsens he may have to have eye surgery. So far it is not that noticeable. I am only telling you this so that if you ever notice his eye doing that there is a reason and his parents are aware of it. This should not hinder him from leading a normal life, but he will never have perfect vision.

I don't usually put political stuff on my blog, but this is so how I feel!!!

2009-10-22T12:49:00.001-05:00

Dear Mr. President:

I'm planning to move my family and extended family into Mexico for my health, and I would like to ask you to assist me.

We're planning to simply walk across the border from the U.S. into Mexico, and we'll need your help to make a few arrangements.

We plan to skip all the legal stuff like visas, passports, immigration quotas and laws.

I'm sure they handle those things the same way you do here. So, would you mind telling your buddy, President Calderon, that I'm on my way over?

Please let him know that I will be expecting the following:

1. Free medical care for my entire family.

2. English-speaking government bureaucrats for all services I might need, whether I use them or not.

3. Please print all Mexican government forms in English.

4. I want my grandkids to be taught Spanish by English-speaking (Bi-lingual) teachers.

5. Tell their schools they need to include classes on American culture and history.

6. I want my grandkids to see the American flag on one of the flag poles at their school.

7. Please plan to feed my grandkids at school for both breakfast and lunch.

8. I will need a local Mexican driver's license so I can get easy access to government services.

9. I do plan to get a car and drive in Mexico, but I don't plan to purchase car insurance, and I probably won't make any special effort to learn local traffic laws.

10. In case one of the Mexican police officers does not get the memo from their president to leave me alone, please be sure that every patrol car has at least one English-speaking officer.

11. I plan to fly the U.S. flag from my house top, put U S. flag decals on my car, and have a gigantic celebration on July 4th. I do not want any complaints or negative comments from the locals.

12. I would also like to have a nice job without paying any taxes, or have any labor or tax laws enforced on any business I may start.

13. Please have the president tell all the Mexican people to be extremely nice and never say critical things about me or my family, or about the strain we might place on their economy.

14. I want to receive free food stamps.

15. Naturally, I'll expect rent subsidies.

16. I'll need Income tax credits so although I don't pay Mexican taxes, I'll receive money from the government.

17. Please arrange it so that the Mexican Gov't pays $4,500 to help me buy a new car.

18. Oh yes, I almost forgot, please enroll me free into the Mexican Social Security program so that I'll get a monthly income in retirement.

I know this is an easy request because you already do all these things for all his people who walk over to the U.S. from Mexico. I am sure that President Calderon won't mind returning the favor if you ask him nicely.

Thank you so much for your kind help.
You're the man!!!

Look at all my chompers!!

2009-10-19T22:51:00.001-05:00

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-01T14:22:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we went to the pumpkin patch with some friends from church. Logan has been asking to go back since last year. We have a really nice one close to our house with animals to feed and a little hayride.

Brady was not impressed.

Logan loved this truck.

Reality TV

2009-09-22T13:40:00.002-05:00

Last night I finished watching the America's Got Talent finale on the DVR (BTW my FAVORITE one won- I love Kevin Skinner). I started listing in my head all the reality TV shows I record every week. Um, it's a little embarassing. This is coming from the person that up to a few months ago did not even have TV. Now I record Dancing With the Stars, So You Think You Can Dance, America's Got Talent, Jon and Kate Plus 8, 18 Kids and Counting, and The Bachelor (or Bachelorette). I think the only show I watch that is not Reality TV is The Office. I used to think these shows were so dumb and now I find myself sucked in. Oh well, it's a nice little escape for a few hours every once in a while. And if Michelle Duggar can raise 18+, I can raise 5. Maybe.

Look what followed me in the front door last night. . .

2009-09-18T12:15:00.003-05:00

Yes, it was as big as it looks in the picture, we get some big ones out here. I think it is time to call the pest control company, they come out here every month instead of every 3 months, they are probably losing $$ on our house. But the inside is pretty bug free, it is what is roaming around the outside of the house that freaks me out a bit.

check me out. . .

2009-09-14T23:32:00.003-05:00

look what I am trying to do, yes I am barely 6 months old and I am trying to crawl- there are just too many kids here that I have to keep up with- and check out my new chompers too
oh, and mom finally got me my own room- no more sleeping in her bathroom in the pack and play!

Madelynn

2009-09-13T17:21:00.001-05:00

For anyone that knows my sister, her precious baby was born on the 10th. Check out her blog for some pics (I have a few on my phone, but they did not turn out so great because I got too close).

Kaleb's Birthday and Baptism

2009-09-08T13:59:00.002-05:00

We had a busy weekend. On Friday Kaleb turned 8 years old. Friday night I let him have his friend who is moving soon sleep over. We took them to Peter Piper Pizza for pizza, games, and cake, then came home and set out their sleeping bags. They stayed up until 2:30 in the morning (I told them to go to sleep by 1am) then were up at 7am ready to play some more. Crazy! Saturday Kaleb was baptized. I'm so proud of him. He chose his favorite restaurant to go to afterwards, Grand Buffet. He loves their seafood. His favorite foods are very unique for an eight year old. My mother in law was in town to celebrate with him, and my parents came also. He had such a great time. We got him a Nintendo DS which he was very excited about. He would never tell us what he wanted, just kept saying anything was fine, other than he really wanted a chess game (which we got him of course). I'm glad he loved his gift since he does not really ask for much. He is so easy going. I love having him in our family.